The Best St. Louis Punk Shows in February

Are you sick of being responsible? Does it annoy you to have to follow rules or be pro-social? Do you like basements? Well, if you are a goofy, degenerate weirdo that doesn't quite fit in anywhere else, you might consider our city's DIY hardcore/punk shows.Your underlying anger problem can be brought out to their fullest potential (in a positive way) if you go to these shows. These are my recommendations for great local and national bands that don't play five minute (marathon!) songs or remind you about drink specials. General rule of thumb: If you have five bucks and can show up by 9 pm., then its go time in the pit. One, Two, Fuck You!

Mon 11th. Plush. $5, 9PMChurch Whip, Shaved Women, Ratheart.
This show is going to claw the ears/eyes off/out. Church Whip plays awesome and nasty hardcore punk. It makes sense that local equivalent Shaved Women is playing with them. And then there's the nastiest weirdo in town, Martin Meyer, whose catchy (but probably disgusting) rock & roll band is playing. Why not bring a bunch of slimeballs to Plush's upstairs and take the health code down a couple grades by the end of the night? To quote Shaved Women's front-man Ben Salyers in a recent feature story we did on the band, "It's going to be like 9/11, but worse."

Wed 13. Blank Space. $5, 9PM..Ex-Cult (TN) + Lumpy & The Dumpers w/ maybe some special guests?
"One of these days you're going to face the meat!" This is one of the best local songs ever written. Come get it screamed in your face by a diaper-clad freak of nature and his band of merry morons. BTW, Ex-Cult features Vile Nation/Get A Life's singer Chris Shaw. If you like early-hardcore inspired, Radio Birdman-style punk, then come put off valentine's day at Blank Space. If you hate it, the whole show will probably be over in less than a half hour anyway.Ex-CultLumpy & The Dumpers